Tuesday, April 21, 2015

The Wynne-Russell home is located on Wynne-Russell Road, directly off
U.S. Highway 29 (Lawrenceville Highway), near the intersection of Indian
Trail-Lilburn Road in Lilburn, Georgia.

Thomas
Wynne served in the War of 1812 and his father and his wife's father and
grandfather served in the Revolutionary War. The
Thomas Wynne House, now known as the Wynne-Russell House, was built in the
1820s and is reported to be the oldest home in Lilburn, Georgia. It was a large
plantation in the area for the day, between 400 and 600 acres. Bordered on its
southern side by Jackson Creek, to the south, the land was still owned by the
Native Americans, probably Creek Indians, when the home was built.The creek was ironically, named after General
Andrew Jackson, who moved the Indians off of their land during the Trail of
Tears.

Thomas
Wynne died in 1839. His wife, nine children, and ten slaves continued work the
plantation until a year after the War Between the States, when Mary Wynne died.
Her family remained in the house until 1878, when they sold it to Nathan
Russell. After his death, his son, George Allen Russell, and his wife, Mary,
lived in the house. "Miss Mary" Russell lived in the house
until 1971, when she died at the age of 97.Architecturally,
the Wynne-Russell House is a good example of the “Georgia Plantation Simple”
homes of the time. Remember, almost every component of this home was made by
hand. It’s not entirely certain how the heart pine planks that line the floors,
walls, and ceiling of the house were cut. Many planks are over sixteen inches
wide! They must have come from the local southern forest and likely from old
growth heart pine trees. Were they sawn-and-planed, then smoothed by hand or
was there a water driven sawmill nearby?

The
kitchen for fire safety reasons would have been in a small building off by
itself. The current white painted kitchen area inside the house was a later
change. In 1884 they added the L-shaped kitchen to the rear of the old kitchen
and a newer front porch.The
house has three original fireplaces built with handmade bricks from Georgia red
clay. The roofing is of handmade cedar shakes. These fieldstone and red clay
brick chimneys were built by slaves, as was much of the work. The random width heart
pine planks and blown glass window panes are typical of other farm houses of
the area.If
you love history, check the photos here, and please visit this unique location
soon!

About Me

I have been a registered architect in Georgia since 1982. I am registered with the NCARB and therefore have reciprocity to practice in all fifty states. I have over forty years experience in commercial and residential design. I have been the principle of my own firm, Greg Mix & Associates Architects Inc. A.I.A. since 1987. My partner, Andy Jessup, and I just formed a new company, Southeast Studios Inc. During my career I have designed hundreds of commercial projects and custom homes for builders and owners. I have been a member of the A.I.A. for over twenty years. My experience includes multi-family, mixed use, offices buildings, banks, retail stores, shopping centers, custom homes and residential renovations.
At the websites GregMix.com and SoutheastStudiosInc.com you can see of photographs of projects I have completed.
770-806-8866; gregmix@comcast.net